Eric Mahmoud charter schools

“Georgia file connects Twin Cities charter school, fraud scheme.” Star Tribune (MN), 3/22/2013

When the news broke last summer that charter school entrepreneur Eric Mahmoud had entered a guilty plea to a mortgage fraud charge in Georgia, Mahmoud had a ready comeback for the Minneapolis school district, under whose authorization he was opening another charter school.

“I assure you that this was a personal, residential matter in Georgia and had nothing to do with Seed Daycare, Harvest Prep or any other educational institution,” Mahmoud told Sara Paul, the district’s liaison with charter schools, in an Aug. 16 e-mail.

In that case, Mahmoud has some explaining to do.

EdVantages Academics

“Charter schools pay off for CEO’s family.” Dayton Daily News (OH), 12/15/2012

A Dayton Daily News investigation found that a company managing several taxpayer-funded charter schools in the area is a lucrative family business whose husband-and-wife management team makes more than $400,000 a year.

NorthStar High School

“Sentinel Watchdog: Failed charter school paid principal's husband $460K.” Orlando Sentinel (FL), 12/1/2012

The failed Orange County charter school that gave its principal a payout of $519,000 in taxpayer dollars after closing in June also paid her husband more than $460,000 during a five-year period, audits show.

The payments to Steven A. Young, which averaged more than $80,000 a year, were for performing "certain management services," according to annual audits paid for by the school. The total included about $41,000 for services to be performed after the school closed, according to one of the audits.

Southwest Learning Center

HEAD OF CHARTERS EARNS $204,000. Albuquerque Journal (NM) 11 Mar 2010 http://www.abqjournal.com/news/metro/112311207866newsmetro03-11-10.htm

The head of three charter schools with fewer than 500 students combined earns $204,000, more than any superintendent in New Mexico except APS' Winston Brooks.

Brooks earns $256,000 a year to oversee a district of 94,000 students; Scott Glasrud oversees the Southwest Learning Center in Albuquerque with a combined enrollment of 495.

Albuquerque school board president Martin Esquivel called Glasrud's salary "beyond ridiculous," adding that it raises questions about accountability at charter schools.

"I think the perception is going to be that this charter school has set up its own private fiefdom using public money," Esquivel said in an interview. "There's really no way to justify this at all."

Glasrud's schools came under scrutiny last month after he refused to provide bank statements to the Albuquerque district, saying doing so would violate the schools' autonomy. He, along with Mike May of Amy Biehl Charter High, eventually released the documents…

"Just like anyone, I negotiate the best deal for myself and my family," Glasrud said…

The next-highest-paid superintendent in New Mexico is Stan Rounds of Las Cruces, who earns $168,000 to oversee a district of 24,000 students, according to the New Mexico Coalition of School Administrators.

[Aggie Lopez, former APS board president and current president of the Southwest Secondary board,] also said Glasrud is more of a superintendent than a principal, and she pointed out that the Southwest Learning Center schools are highly successful, with a graduation rate of 95.2 percent. The schools also consistently make Adequate Yearly Progress in math and reading…

But Esquivel said the schools' performance cannot be directly compared with APS, because of the difference in demographics.

"Some would try to compare the academic achievement to APS, without disclosing the fact that they have nowhere near the same poverty issues," Esquivel said…

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APS QUESTIONS CHARTER SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENT SALARY: APS RAISES MORE QUESTIONS ABOUT CHARTER SCHOOLS. KOAT.com (Albuquerque, NM) 11 Mar 2010

The Albuquerque Public School district is questioning why a charter school superintendent makes more money than the mayor of Albuquerque.

Scott Glasrud oversees three charter schools, Southwest Primary, La Luz Del Monte and Southwest Secondary.

According to reports, he oversees slightly fewer than 500 students and gets paid $204,000 per year.

Winston Brooks, superintendent of the Albuquerque Public School district, supervises 94,000 students and makes $256,000 per year.

"I think a $204,000 salary for 500 kids is absolutely outrageous," said Marty Esquivel, president of APS school board.

"The mayor of Albuquerque makes $100,000 a year, is that job tougher than being the mayor of Albuquerque?" said Esquivel…

Teaneck Community Charter

N.J. CHARTER SCHOOLS ESCAPE PAY LIMIT; March 20, 2011; The Record @ NorthJersey.com 

The director of a Teaneck charter school with about 300 students was paid more than $200,000 last year. In Englewood, the head of an even smaller charter school, with 200 students, earned $152,000 in public money for working part time.

Governor Christie has moved to cap the salaries of superintendents at much larger traditional public school districts, but has proposed no such ceiling on tax-supported charters.

To some, the exemption shows how charters — publicly funded but independently operated — are given a pass when it comes to state regulations meant to ensure fiscal accountability.

"It's patently inequitable," said Bruce Baker, a Rutgers professor who has studied charter school financing.

Under Christie's new cap for traditional schools, superintendents in districts with about 300 students can earn no more than $135,000.

Christie's office did not respond to questions about why the cap does not apply to charters. The governor has said he favors less regulation at charter schools, which operate free of some of the rules that bind other public schools.

Carlos Perez, executive director of the New Jersey Charter School Association, said the autonomous boards that run the schools need to be able to set salaries and hire staff as they see fit…

Most charter school administrators make less than $100,000, but the state numbers show 63 administrators have broken the six-figure barrier.

Rex Shaw, the head of the Teaneck Community Charter School, topped the list. Shaw made $199,739, according to the data. His actual take-home pay was higher thanks to bonus money and reimbursement for unused time, according to the school. Shaw's compensation is listed as $205,249 in the charter school's 2009 filings with the Internal Revenue Service…

The interim superintendent in Teaneck oversees seven schools with 4,500 students and makes about $190,000. The school board is looking for a permanent leader, and will be limited to offering a salary of $175,000 under Christie's new rules.

"It seems somewhat unfair that you're asking charters and [traditional] publics to compete for the same funds, but the rules are different," said Ardie Walser, president of the township school board.

Karla Foy, president of the Teaneck Community Charter, said Shaw's salary was the culmination of a five-year contract and was based on a set of unique circumstances. The school was making the leap to a new building and needed the veteran educator for the transition, she said…

With an infusion of philanthropy into the state's largest school district in Newark, the number of charter schools is expected to grow. Baker said financial reporting at the schools has been inconsistent with only about 23 percent making available the annual financial reports they are required to file with the IRS.

"There's very little accountability with the flow of private money into the charters," Baker said.

New Jersey charter schools (excessive compensation)

N.J. CHARTER SCHOOLS ESCAPE PAY LIMIT; March 20, 2011; The Record @ NorthJersey.com 

The director of a Teaneck charter school with about 300 students was paid more than $200,000 last year. In Englewood, the head of an even smaller charter school, with 200 students, earned $152,000 in public money for working part time.

Governor Christie has moved to cap the salaries of superintendents at much larger traditional public school districts, but has proposed no such ceiling on tax-supported charters.

To some, the exemption shows how charters — publicly funded but independently operated — are given a pass when it comes to state regulations meant to ensure fiscal accountability.

"It's patently inequitable," said Bruce Baker, a Rutgers professor who has studied charter school financing.

Under Christie's new cap for traditional schools, superintendents in districts with about 300 students can earn no more than $135,000.

Christie's office did not respond to questions about why the cap does not apply to charters. The governor has said he favors less regulation at charter schools, which operate free of some of the rules that bind other public schools.

Carlos Perez, executive director of the New Jersey Charter School Association, said the autonomous boards that run the schools need to be able to set salaries and hire staff as they see fit…

Most charter school administrators make less than $100,000, but the state numbers show 63 administrators have broken the six-figure barrier.

Rex Shaw, the head of the Teaneck Community Charter School, topped the list. Shaw made $199,739, according to the data. His actual take-home pay was higher thanks to bonus money and reimbursement for unused time, according to the school. Shaw's compensation is listed as $205,249 in the charter school's 2009 filings with the Internal Revenue Service…

The interim superintendent in Teaneck oversees seven schools with 4,500 students and makes about $190,000. The school board is looking for a permanent leader, and will be limited to offering a salary of $175,000 under Christie's new rules.

"It seems somewhat unfair that you're asking charters and [traditional] publics to compete for the same funds, but the rules are different," said Ardie Walser, president of the township school board.

Karla Foy, president of the Teaneck Community Charter, said Shaw's salary was the culmination of a five-year contract and was based on a set of unique circumstances. The school was making the leap to a new building and needed the veteran educator for the transition, she said…

With an infusion of philanthropy into the state's largest school district in Newark, the number of charter schools is expected to grow. Baker said financial reporting at the schools has been inconsistent with only about 23 percent making available the annual financial reports they are required to file with the IRS.

"There's very little accountability with the flow of private money into the charters," Baker said.

Palisades Charter School

LEADER OF ENGLEWOOD CHARTER SCHOOL MUST REPAY $500,000 IN PENSION PAYMENTS, COURT RULES; March 9, 2011; The Record via NorthJersey.com (Bergen County, NJ) 

The head of an Englewood Charter charter school - who is also president of the Garfield Board of Education - must repay more than $500,000 in state pension payments he collected improperly over the last decade, an administrative law judge has ruled.

The court did not buy Anthony Barckett's claim that he was a six-figure consultant, rather than a regular employee, at the 200-student Englewood at the Palisades Charter School. Pension rules forbid retirees from working as regular, long-term employees for another district while collecting retirement benefits. Barckett retired as Garfield's school business administrator in 1997 and has been collecting a pension ever since…

The judge noted that Barckett is responsible for hiring and supervising staff and overseeing finances and state compliance at the school.

Barckett earned more than $152,000 for what he claims was a part-time consultancy at the K-5 charter school last year, according to the court papers.

Additionally, he collected $5,800 a month in retirement payments from the state Teachers' Pension and Annuity Fund (TPAF), according to the state treasury departmentTreasury Department [sic]…

Barckett said he will appeal the decision to state superior court Superior Court and referred calls to his attorney, Michael Oropollo of Hackensack. Oropollo referred to briefs he filed in the case in which he argues that a 1999 letter from the pension division said Barckett could be an independent contractor. In the briefs, Oropollo noted facts that he said bolster's the claim that Barckett is not a regular employee - namely that he does not get sick or vacation time or punch a clock, only works part- time for the school, and pays an unincorporated business tax…

Barckett testified that he believes his compensation is less than what others would be earning in similar positions based on his experience, according to the court papers. But state records show he is one of the highest-paid charter school directors in the state, most of whom work full- time.

Rosa Bland, board president of the Englewood charter school, declined to comment on the issue...

Barckett's pension was based on a final average salary of $105,680.96 as Garfield business administrator, according to the treasuryTreasury Department [sic].

Barckett left that job in 1997 during a brouhaha over board spending at an Atlantic City convention. At the time, Barckett claimed he was made a scapegoat for the board. He had a hotel bill of $1,640 that included more than $1,000 in room service charges. He reimbursed the district $983 and was later asked by the state to return another an additional $244 that was spent on cab fare and luggage handling.

Harlem Village Academies

CATHIE BLACK CLAIMS TO HAVE EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCE WITH CHARTER SCHOOL BOARD POST, BUT IT'S MOOT; November 28, 2010; NY Daily

City schools chancellor nominee Cathie Black insists she's connected to public education via a highly touted charter school - but a close look shows she's had no contact with students, parents or teachers there.

Officials at the Harlem Village Academies admit the school's National Leadership Board, which Black joined just five months ago, has never met.

Black primarily advised the school's CEO, Deborah Kenny, on "management, leadership, and the development of a book" Kenny is writing, the school said…

Kenny, who oversees 450 students, is paid $442,000, including a $140,000 "bonus" and $27,780 in "other" expenses.

The schools chancellor gets $250,000 to oversee 1.1 million students.

Many charter schools have a parent representative on their board. Harlem Village does not…

Bloomberg has called the school a national "poster child" for school reform. Conservative media mogul Rupert Murdoch gave $5 million toward construction of the new high school.

The school has been lauded nationally for its high test scores, including for pushing 100% of its eighth-graders to pass state math tests.

A look at the overall scores tells a different tale. In the last round of tests, like schools across New York, numbers dropped precipitously after the state made the tests tougher.

Schoolwide English test scores fell from 81% passing to 41%, while math dropped from 91% to 71%. And by eighth grade, the number of students taking the tests is a small fraction of the earlier grades…

An unusually high number of younger students either drop out or are held back. In school year 2003-04, the year the school opened, only 48 of 73 fifth-graders made it to sixth grade. In school year 2006-07, 46 of 68 moved on; in 2007-08, just 40 of 76 fifth-graders made it to sixth grade…

CARE Charter School of Excellence

CHARTER SCHOOL APPEAL SHOT DOWN BY STATE COMMISSION, November 4, 2010, WCTV News (Tallahassee, FL) 

A Jefferson County charter school is fighting to stay open, but today they experienced a setback when a state commission shot down their request for an appeal. School Board officials are hopeful that this is the beginning of the end of a ongoing controversy…

The Jefferson County School Board faced off with the CARE Charter School of Excellence Wednesday morning in front of the Charter Schools Appeals Commission.

The Jefferson County School Board voted in early August to close down CARE, citing nearly 20 violations…

For three hours the committee fired off questions concerning the school's failing FCAT scores, poor documentation, and fiscal mismanagement.

Ultimately, the Commission voted 6 to 0 in favor of the District, which means they'll recommend that the State Board of Education deny CARE's appeal…

The two parties will meet again on December 17th in Miami where the State Board of Education will make its final decision on whether to keep the school open.

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EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF JEFFERSON COUNTY CHARTER RESPONDS TO ALLEGED VIOLATIONS, August 10, 2010, WCTV News (Tallahassee, FL) 

A local charter school is in jeopardy of closing and now the Executive Director of that school is speaking out.

Harriett Cuyler is busy preparing for a new school year. But if the Jefferson County School Board has its way, the empty halls at the CARE Charter School of Excellence will remain without students.

Jefferson County's Superintendent released a document titled "Care Charter School Issues" - a list of detailed reasons to shut the school down.

One of the items on the list comes under "fiscal responsibility". It says for a full year, two high-ranking administrators salaries added up to nearly 200,000 dollars - more than 20 percent of the CARE's total generated revenue.

"The district does have documentation on position and salaries and the documentation that's been presented to the district will prove that is not the case," said Cuyler, Executive Director of CARE Charter School of Excellence.

The document also says several CARE employees failed to get required fingerprints and background checks done in a timely manner…

Harlem Success Academy Charter Schools/Success Charter Network

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION EYES NEW SPOT ON WEST SIDE FOR UPPER WEST SUCCESS CHARTER SCHOOL; November 19, 2010; NY Daily News (NY) 

City officials are proposing a possible new home for an upper West Side charter school after two earlier choices touched off an uproar among parents.

The Education Department is floating the idea of placing Upper West Success - part of a network of charter schools run by ex-Councilwoman Eva Moskowitz - in the Brandeis High School campus.

The idea, however, may not mollify critics.

"It makes no sense to put an elementary school within that high school. You cannot think of an issue I feel more strongly about," said Councilwoman Gale Brewer (D-Manhattan).